A person in their 40s who died after testing positive for COVID-19 is believed to be youngest fatality from the infection this year.
It is not known whether the patient was immunocompromised or already vulnerable due to any chronic conditions.
An ACT Health spokesperson was unable to provide more details but said a man between 40 to 50 years old had "died from COVID-19" during the June 21-27 reporting period.
"Due to patient privacy we are unable to confirm if there were comorbidities in this patient," the spokesperson said.
ACT Health has reported 32 COVID-related deaths so far this year.
However, this case appears to be the youngest death due to the infection since the health directorate began reporting age groups in March 2023.
The number of infections reported to the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System through PCR testing in June - 854 cases - were higher than cases recorded in May.
It should also be noted ACT Health stopped recording COVID cases from self-reported positive rapid antigen tests (RATs) in December 2023.
Additionally, an outbreak of 34 positive cases at the Alexander Maconochie Centre last week led to inmates isolating in their accommodation units. Some were unable to attend court hearings.
The ACT Supreme Court heard one man in the prison had caught the infection twice in recent months.
Other respiratory illnesses
Influenza and the common cold or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) also continue to make the rounds this winter.
Flu infections went from 292 cases in May to 794 cases in June while RSV cases decreased from 798 cases in May to 663 recorded last month.
There was only one case of whooping cough at the start of winter in 2023 but the ACT has recorded 40 times the infections, mostly reported among children, in May and June this year.
Doctor's advice
As Canberra shivers through flu season, many GPs have advised people continue to get flu shots and stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccinations.
Whooping cough vaccines were also recommended to help protect babies who are said to be most vulnerable to it.
Without taking a test, it's hard to know which virus you have but Dr Kerrie Aust previously said people might recover faster after having the common cold as compared to COVID-19 or the flu.
"With a cold you like with the rhinovirus, you might have a sore throat, bit of a stuffy nose, maybe a mild headache and people might have low-grade fevers ... they don't tend to be very high," she said.
"With more serious infections of COVID-19 and with influenza, people might get higher fevers, cough and a sore throat. They might have headaches, vomiting and we often also see diarrhoea with both influenza and with COVID-19."
